“But...why?”
Before he answers, I hear a very drunken, “Get it, Shari!” coming from behind me. I look over my shoulder to see that the ride has ended and my friends are swerving their way over to us. Brad laughs as I shake my head. They really are a sight.
Jaime nearly trips over herself in her fight to get to us, but Brad catches her arm before she can faceplant in the dirt.
“Oh man, you're strong,” she says wide-eyed, clumsily trying to wipe her dark hair back from her ice-blue eyes. Turning to me, she absolutely does not whisper, “Shari, I know I said he's a child, but you should fuck him. I bet he's dynamite in the sack!”
Seriously. Just kill me.
Elle and Max reach us as she basically shouts the words, and Max in all her inebriated glory also does not whisper behind her hand, “Ooh yes, you should shag the manboy! He's really hot and he definitely wants you.”
Elle is nearly folded over in laughter as I pray for the earth to swallow me whole. I can't even look at Brad until I hear him full on belly laughing. Good god, he is divine. His head is thrown back, his Adam's apple is bobbing, dimples have appeared in both cheeks, and I might die a little when he throws his arm around my shoulders and states, “You should listen to your friends,Shari. They're very wise.”
I can't speak. I can barely breathe. I'm not usually this easily stupefied, but it's been a long, long time since I've had the undivided attention of such an attractive guy.
“Are you ladies glamping here tonight or are you headed home?”
“We're glamping, trying to even leave the carpark would probably take a couple hours and ain't nobody got the patience for that!” Jaime punctuates with a poke to Brad's chest. “Damn, you really are just all kinds of firm, hey? Even if you are a baby.”
“Forgive my friends, they've forgotten how to internalise their thoughts.”
Brad just smiles down at me, arm still around my shoulders. “There's nothing to forgive. I find the honesty refreshing, but just to clarify, I amdefinitelynot a baby. With that in mind, I was looking for you to ask if you ladies would like to join me and my mates in the staff campsite for drinks and snacks and to hang out?”
“In! What food do you have? I want Asian street food, we missed out earlier and I'm not happy about it. Also, does anyone have a guitar? We could have a sing along!” Max claps. Gotta love a drunken Malaysian. Food and karaoke are the only things that matter.
“We can grab any food you like now and take it back with us, and yes, one of the guys has a guitar. We even have a fire pit we can sing around.”
This garners somewhoop whoopsfrom the girls and we make our way around the food trucks to gather our bounty.
“It's nearlytwo in the morning and I really need us to be on the road by nine, guys. I'm headed to bed.” Elle has to pick up herkids from her parents’ house before lunch tomorrow – which is nearly a two hour drive from here – and she still has to drop us all off since she decided to be our designated driver. Luckily, we all live pretty close to each other.
“Yeah, I'll come with, I'm knackered! Max, wake up. We're going back to the tent. How does she always manage to sleep anywhere and everywhere? It's like a superpower,” Jaime says as she prods sleeping beauty.
I reluctantly pull my arm from around Brad's neck and make to stand from his lap where I've been perched for the last half hour. He dragged me to sit there when I came back from my last toilet break and I'm not upset about it. I am upset to be leaving him, though. I didn't even get to sneak in a cheeky snog!
“Wait, do you have to go?” he stops me from standing with the arm he has wrapped across my lap.
“Umm, yes?” My head's only a little fuzzy from the alcohol, but I'm not really sure why he's asking.
“What if,” he clears his throat and tries again. “What if you stayed with me tonight? I'm not sharing a tent with anyone so you could stay. In my tent. With me.” His fingers twitch against my thigh and I could swear that faint blush is back on his cheeks. It's hard to tell with the orange glow of the fire pit crackling in front of us, but his obvious nerves are endearing nonetheless.
“I—”
“Yes! She'd love to stay the night with you, wouldn't you, Shari?” Jaime's voice interrupts whatever I was about to say. Because I'm not even sure what my answer was going to be at this point.
“What?” My head snaps towards her. “But...but you guys are going back to the tent and we need to be up early and?—”
“Brad, can you give us a minute? We'll bring her right back,” Jaime yells as she hauls me off his lap and starts dragging meaway. I'm distantly aware of his friends and colleagues watching us with rapt attention.
“Guys, this is insane. I can't believe you're encouraging this! We haven't even kissed, what if it sucks? What if I sleep with him and he thinks I'm bad at it? And then I'm stuck in this campsite and have to do the walk of shame at the ass crack of dawn. No, I'm coming with you now.”
“Shazaaaaam!” Max drawls the nickname she gave me when we were seven. “He's so hot, though. You should do it. Dohim.”
“But he's so young! Dude, I haven't been anywhere near his league in, in,” I huff, waving my arms around, “probably in as long as he's been alive!”
“Becauseyou'reout ofhisleague! Not the other way around. Don't you downplay yourself Shari Thea Jones,” Jaime wags her finger in my face, dangerously close to poking me in the eye.
“Shazaaaaam!!” Max blurts again, making me chuckle. She's going to have such a bad head tomorrow.
